Gulshan Grover in MTV Roadies

Tuesday, August 08, 2006
New Delhi (UNI): As an archetypical 'bad man' of Bollywood he has made life difficult for many a star in 'reel life'. Now, Bollywood's 'meanest villain' Gulshan Grover is all set to bring his 'mean streak' on the television screen. The reel life villain will ''make the going tougher'' for group of youngsters travelling across the country by bikes amid a host of grueling situations, in MTV's new season of the roadies, which was announced at a press meet here yesterday.

Titles 'MTV Hero Honda Roadies season 4', the latest edition of the MTV adventure series, which has since its inception in 2003 sought to test the mettle of a group of youngsters travelling across the country by bikes amid a host of grueling situations, will follow seven boys and six girls travelling on Hero Honda Karizmas across 8500 Km of terrain from Kovalam near Thiruvanthapuram to Sikkim's capital Gangtok, facing gritty conditions like harsh Sun, snow, heavy rain and other complex challenges before one of them will be crowned the winner.

''With unexpected turns and twists and ruthless vote-outs at every stage, the latest season of the MTV Roadies will be edgier and more exhilarating. In addition, to make matters toughter, reel life veteran villain of Bollywood Gulshan Grover will come in at strategic intervals during the trip by the participants to do what he knows best - make the lives of finalists more difficult, vice president and General manager, creative and content at MTV networks India Ashish Patil said at a press meet in the capital to promote the show. Speaking on the occasion, Gulshan Grover said he decided to become a part of the show as he, like many other stars and filmmakers of tinsel town, wanted to explore first hand what makes the youth tick. It is the first time that the actor is associating himself with a television reality show.

''I have earlier been receiving offers to be a part of TV campaigns against cancer and AIDS but I was not interested. Then, when MTV came to me with this offer to be part of MTV Hero Honda Roadies Season 4, I lapped it up as I have always been curious to know what makes the youth tick. Being a part of the show is my endeavour to do my bit for the youth of the country,''the actor said. ''If my presence in the show can make life more thrilling and interesting for the youth, I would consider it my privilege'' Grover said.

Lamenting the fact that not enough shows were being made on television targeted at youth, Grover said, ''There are programmes for children, on dreaded diseases like cancer and AIDS but not much is being done to explore the feelings and lives of the youth. After all, youth constitute the future of our country. So, it is responsibility of all of us to explore what is it that they want and desire.'' ''I for one would love to associate myself with programmes that make life exciting for youth'' he said.

According to Patil, this year's season of roadies was tougher compared to the previous seasons. ''The show is not for viewers looking for just another talent hunt. However, all those who thrive on a power shot of unlicensed thrills, can join the ride,''Patil said. Beginning from Kovalam, 16 km from Thiruvananthapuram, the journey of the 13 young adventurers will take them though Kerala, Rajasthan, Punjab, Delhi and the North East, winding up in Gangtok.

They will cover the 8500 km journey in 40 days on Hero Honda Karizma bike. In order to make it to the final rounds, aspirants will have to face grueling conditions in Mumbai (where the roadies will arrive today), Kolkata (August 10), Chandigarh (August 13), Lucknow (August 16) and Delhi (August 18) where their wits, their guts and their attitude will be put to test.

Losely based on the MTV US' reality show 'Road Rules', MTV Hero Honda Roadies was launched in 2003 as India's first adventure reality show that tested the mettle of a young group traveling across the country on bikes by exposing them to grueling situations and igniting complex relationship issues. The winner that year was Rannvijay Singh, who went on to become a VJ on MTV and hosted roadies 2 and 3 and will also be hosted this year's season of the show.